If I stay in the Hehuan Sect, I'll live off the pampered daughters of the Heavenly Pride Sect.

Yingtian Peak.

In Xiao Qinghan's quiet room, the air was filled with the fragrance of sandalwood.

She sat cross-legged on a futon, an old notebook spread out in front of her.

It was the very book that Mo Chengyue had found for her in the Sutra Repository, a cultivation guide on the ancient dual cultivation method of the Hehuan Sect.

These past few days, apart from recuperating, she has spent all her time on this notebook.

They tried to find their own path from the clues left by their predecessors.

However, this road is a bit...hot on the feet.

"The harmony of Yin and Yang, the balance of water and fire, is the great principle of heaven and earth; the human body itself possesses its own universe..."

"Male yang, female yin, the union of yin and yang is the source of all things, and cultivation is no exception..."

"...When performing this method, both individuals must be of one mind and spirit, open and honest with each other, and their spirits and bodies must merge in order to guide the flow of Yin and Yang energies throughout the body..."

"...its postures are varied, including dragons soaring, tigers pacing, monkeys wrestling, and cicadas clinging..."

Every time she reads these words, Xiao Qinghan's cheeks can't help but flush.

Her usually aloof and icy face was now flushed red enough to bleed.

Steam practically bubbled out from above their heads.

What kind of outrageous and inhumane words are these!

What were these powerful predecessors thinking about when they were cultivating?

What respectable person would write such cultivation insights?

She slammed the notebook shut, her chest heaving. She took several deep breaths before she could barely suppress the burning heat and shame in her heart.

For spiritual practice.

This is for spiritual practice.

She kept mentally preparing herself.

However, when she opened the notebook again with trembling hands and saw the even more explicit pictures and text descriptions...

Those abstract and impressionistic paintings of two figures with clearly defined meridians are full of meaning.

Her brain went blank for a second.

"I can't do it anymore, this car is going too fast, I can't control it!"

This once-proud and privileged woman now just wants to disappear into the ground.

She suddenly stood up and rushed out of the quiet room as if fleeing.

The cold wind outside the quiet room, mixed with raindrops, swept over her face, bringing a touch of cool calm to her burning cheeks.

The shame still burned in my heart, but what followed was a deeper sense of powerlessness.

Why would she look at these things? Because she has become weak.

The once dazzling Xiao Qinghan now has to rely on this... almost absurd method to find a glimmer of hope.

Resentment clung to her heart like a poisonous vine.

She instinctively gripped the hilt of the sword at her waist, as if it were her only support.

Yes, she also has a sword! After all, she is first and foremost a swordsman!

With that thought in mind, she moved swiftly and appeared on the cliff edge outside the Yiyu Pavilion.

The mountain wind howled, and a light drizzle fell.

Xiao Qinghan drew the Meteor Sword, not for cultivation, but to vent her anger!

"The Azure Phoenix Sword Manual is as swift as the wind and as fleeting as a shadow."

She silently recited the sword incantation, her figure weaving through the rain, the sword light swift and agile, stirring up raindrops.

But her heart was in turmoil.

Although the Meteor Sword was a mid-grade spiritual weapon, the pitiful amount of true essence in her dantian was simply insufficient to unleash its true power.

Before she had even finished a set of sword techniques, she was already drenched in sweat and breathing rapidly.

"clang!"

The sword moves she envisioned in her mind were like flowing clouds and running water, meant to lightly touch the raindrops, but her arm responded with sluggishness and weakness.

She attempted to unleash the most exquisite move in the "Azure Phoenix Sword Manual," "Clouds Roll and Unroll."

In her consciousness, the trajectory of the sword move was crystal clear; the tip of the sword should have skimmed the water like a dragonfly, leaving fleeting ripples on the thirty-two raindrops.

This is a move she could do with her eyes closed in the past.

However, when she activated her true essence, the pitiful spiritual power in her dantian flickered and died out in an instant, like a candle in the wind.

Instead of feeling agile, my arms felt sluggish and weak, as if burdened by a thousand pounds!

The imagined graceful sword dance turned into a clumsy dragging.

"clang!"

The meteor sword lost control; instead of striking the rock, its tip flew helplessly out of his hand, spinning as it plunged into the mud several feet away.

Only the hilt remained, like a piece of discarded scrap metal. The blade hummed, as if weeping, or perhaps mocking.

Xiao Qinghan stood frozen in place, staring intently at the sword stuck in the mud. What she saw wasn't the sword, but her own disheveled reflection.

That once-proud and proud woman, known as the "Azure Phoenix," can no longer even hold her own sword.

My face was covered in cold rain, and I couldn't tell if it was mixed with something else. A bitter taste spread from the bottom of my heart all the way to my throat.

Dissipation of power?

Or will we not part ways?

These two thoughts were like two evil spirits tearing at her mind.

Dissipating one's cultivation means reverting to a helpless mortal? Over twenty years of practice would be destroyed in an instant.

Then go and cultivate that... dual cultivation method that made her blush?

does it worth?

The risk is too great.

Failure means certain death and the annihilation of one's spiritual essence.

However, if she doesn't disperse her power, her spiritual root will be taken away and her meridians will be damaged, thus ending her path to enlightenment.

She could only live out her days as a useless person bearing the title of "fallen genius," enduring the pity and ridicule of others.

"What should I do?"

She muttered to herself, her eyes filled with confusion.

The rain soaked her blue dress, which clung tightly to her shapely body.

It outlines breathtaking curves, but she is completely unaware, only filled with despair.

She looked at the buzzing meteor sword in her hand and recalled the pictures and texts in her notes that made her blush.

One path is a dead end leading to stagnation, the other is an inconceivably perilous road. Neither path can be traversed by her alone.

"No..." she murmured to herself, the confusion in her eyes gradually replaced by a resolute look, "I can't go on like this anymore."

She sheathed her longsword and looked up toward her master's cave deep in the sea of ​​clouds, as if that was her last hope.

The next moment, she rose up on her sword, the sword light slicing through the rain, carrying a tragic air of desperate resolve.

The sea of ​​clouds surged, and the beautiful woman's master's cave was filled with celestial energy.

"Master."

Xiao Qinghan bowed respectfully outside the Lingcao Garden.

"Qing'er, you've come."

The beautiful female master was tending to her herb garden when she saw Xiao Qinghan, and a gentle smile appeared on her face.

"I have something I would like to ask you, Master."

The beautiful woman put down the small jade hoe in her hand and led her to sit down at the stone table.

"It's probably about dissipating your cultivation and starting over."

As soon as her master spoke, he saw through her thoughts.

Xiao Qinghan nodded, without hiding anything.

"This disciple is hesitant and does not know what to do."

"Dissipating one's power means a slim chance of survival."

The beautiful woman's expression turned serious.

"It involves reversing the flow of all true essence within the body to cleanse oneself and forcibly dissolve one's cultivation."

"This process is no less than scraping the bone and removing the marrow; the meridians will break inch by inch, and the dantian will be on the verge of collapse."

"Ordinary people simply cannot bear that kind of pain."

Xiao Qinghan's face paled slightly.

"However, there are also successful precedents."

The beautiful woman changed the subject.

"In the history of our sect, there have been several predecessors who, after their path of cultivation was interrupted, chose to disperse their cultivation and resume the ancient methods, and ultimately achieved far greater accomplishments than before."

"Ever since that day when we spoke, I knew you had already made up your mind. In the past few days, I have also been searching for and preparing some things for you."

"If you dissipate your cultivation and start over, I will protect you."

As she spoke, she took out the herbs from her storage bag and showed them to Xiao Qinghan.

"These are the Nine-Turn Meridian-Regenerating Pill, Blood-Coagulating Grass, and Muscle-Regenerating Jade Dew. They are all spiritual medicines that can be used to rebuild the meridians after dissipating one's cultivation."

Xiao Qinghan looked at the cinnabar on the stone table, and her eyes welled up with tears.

"Master..."

"Silly child." The beautiful woman patted her head affectionately.

"A master's responsibility is not only to impart knowledge and skills, but also to pave the way for his or her when she makes a choice."

Having resolved her concerns about the loss of her internal energy, Xiao Qinghan then raised her doubts about the ancient methods.

"Master, is that dual cultivation method really reliable? I feel... somewhat... embarrassed to talk about it."

Upon hearing this, the beautiful woman's face also showed a hint of helplessness.

"I know this method sounds absurd, but it is indeed the most orthodox ancient method of our sect."

"How about this, you won't believe me if I just talk. I'll take you to meet someone, and once you meet her, all your doubts will disappear."

The beautiful woman took Xiao Qinghan's hand and transformed into a streak of rainbow, flying towards a secluded mountain peak deep within the Hehuan Sect.